31: Chapter 31 News of Chu Kuangren

[Chu Kuangren: Haha, you finally replied! I thought you were playing the cold and aloof type!]

[Chu Kuangren: Let me introduce myself. I'm Chu Kuangren, real name Chu Tianguo, from the provincial capital's Chu family. I'm ranked eighth, one spot higher than you.]

[Su Bai: Is there something?]

[Chu Kuangren: Straightforward! Then I'll just say it.]

[Chu Kuangren: I'm representing the Chu family. We want to sponsor you.]

Su Bai narrowed his eyes.

Sponsor?

[Chu Kuangren: Don't be so quick to refuse, hear me out first.]

[Chu Kuangren: You're currently ninth in the province, but do you know the backgrounds of the top eight?]

[Chu Kuangren: Number one is Lin Canglan, the direct son of the Lin family. He's built on a mountain of resources, and his family has a Seventh-Order Demigod ancestor backing them.]

[Chu Kuangren: Number two is Murong Xue, the successor of the Ice Phoenix Family. She awakened with the Ice Phoenix bloodline; she was born at the Fourth Order.]

[Chu Kuangren: Number three is Chu Tiange, my cousin. He's one of ours, so I won't say more.]

[Chu Kuangren: Numbers four through eight are either from prominent clans or heirs to wealthy families. Every single one of them has a gold mine behind them.]

[Chu Kuangren: And you?]

[Chu Kuangren: From Qingshi City, an ordinary family, a Yin Qi World, and you fought your way to ninth on your own.]

[Chu Kuangren: Impressive. I respect that.]

[Chu Kuangren: But how long do you think you can stay at ninth without resources?]

[Chu Kuangren: The competition in the top ten is ten thousand times more brutal than you imagine.]

Su Bai watched these messages, his expression remaining calm.

[Su Bai: And so?]

[Chu Kuangren: And so, our Chu family wants to sponsor you.]

[Chu Kuangren: We give you resources and help you grow. But in exchange, you represent the face of the Chu family. You can't do anything that would harm the family.]

[Chu Kuangren: Also, when the Chu family needs you, you must stand on our side and work for the family.]

[Chu Kuangren: How about it?]

Su Bai was silent for a few seconds.

[Su Bai: Not interested.]

On the other end of the chat, in a luxurious villa in the provincial capital, a young man in pajamas stared at the screen, stunned.

Chu Tianguo.

A direct descendant of the Chu family, ranked eighth in the province, and the only commoner-born individual on the heavenly pride list who could compete with the scions of the great families.

He had thought these terms were enticing enough.

After all, he was offering the resources of the entire Chu family!

Anyone else would have been moved.

But this Su Bai...

He frowned and typed rapidly.

[Chu Kuangren: Why?]

[Su Bai: I don't like being constrained.]

[Chu Kuangren: ...]

[Chu Kuangren: Fine, I respect that.]

[Chu Kuangren: But there's a piece of intel I should tell you. For free.]

[Chu Kuangren: Consider it a gesture of friendship.]

Su Bai narrowed his eyes.

[Su Bai: Speak.]

[Chu Kuangren: Do you know what the true value of being in the provincial top ten is?]

[Su Bai: Resource allocation?]

[Chu Kuangren: That's just the surface.]

[Chu Kuangren: The true value is the entry ticket to the 'Battle Stage'.]

[Chu Kuangren: The Battle Stage isn't for fighting people within the province. It's for fighting the national top hundred, or even the national top ten.]

[Chu Kuangren: Every year after the heavenly pride list is finalized, the top ten from every province in the country enter the Battle Stage for a true contest. Of course, the two provinces of the Imperial Capital and the Magic Capital are exceptions.]

[Chu Kuangren: The Battle Stage is actual combat.]

[Chu Kuangren: Your main body won't be harmed, but winning or losing directly affects your rating at the national level.]

[Chu Kuangren: The higher the rating, the more resources you get, the greater your authority, and you can even enter worlds specifically provided by the state to scavenge for resources.]

Su Bai stared at these messages, his pupils contracting slightly.

[Su Bai: When does it start?]

[Chu Kuangren: That's the problem.]

[Chu Kuangren: The timing is uncertain.]

[Chu Kuangren: There's never an advance notice for when the Battle Stage opens. Sometimes it opens three days after the list is set, sometimes a month later. But it's never more than a month.]

[Chu Kuangren: Moreover, once it opens, you can enter at any time, but staying out for too long is considered a forfeit. So everyone usually chooses to enter early to seize the initiative.]

Su Bai fell silent.

He instantly understood the value of this information.

His original plan was to develop steadily, devouring worlds step by step, accumulating Power Of Faith, creating more hero units, and then considering war when the time was ripe.

But this intel told him he had no time left.

The Battle Stage could open at any moment.

Once it opened, he would have to face geniuses from all over the country.

Among those people, there were those of the Fifth Order.

Those with Mythology Worlds.

Those with zerg worlds.

Those with Chaos Worlds.

And he was currently only at the Third Order.

The gap was too large.

[Chu Kuangren: You understand now?]

[Chu Kuangren: You're ninth now, but once the Battle Stage opens, you might even encounter the number one from the Imperial Capital or the Magic Capital.]

[Chu Kuangren: I'm giving you this intel for no other reason than I think you're someone who can achieve great things, and I want to build some goodwill.]

[Chu Kuangren: No need to reply, just prepare well.]

[Chu Kuangren: I hope to see you on the Battle Stage.]

[Chu Kuangren: The living version, that is.]

The messages abruptly stopped.

Su Bai stared at the screen, not moving for a long time.

After a while, he took a deep breath, exited the chat room, and closed the metal tablet.

He had no time for lamentation, shock, or fear.

There was only one thing he could do.

Become stronger.

Become as strong as possible as quickly as possible.

He closed his eyes, and his consciousness sank into the Netherworld World.

Grayish-white Yin Qi rushed toward him.

The Ghost King stood quietly at the world core, his golden vertical pupils watching him.

Black and White Impermanence stood side by side, one white and one black, one gentle and one ferocious.

The Ghost Bride floated in mid-air, looking left and right.

Sadako stood by the well, looking up, her long hair sliding down to reveal her pale face.

The Slit-Mouthed Woman held her scissors, standing at the edge of the Yaksha Wasteland, silently watching him.

The Mushroom King stood at the edge of the Mycelium Deep Forest, his purple eyes piercing through the mist to rest on him.

Twenty thousand Mushroom People were busy in the depths of the forest.

Two hundred and fifty-eight Yin Soldiers and sixty Soul-Hooking Ghosts were lined up in neat formation.

Su Bai stood before these beings, his voice calm yet firm:

“From now on, all plans are shifting to a wartime state.”

“I want to push the Netherworld World to its strongest in the shortest possible time.”

The Ghost King knelt on one knee: “As you command.”

Black and White Impermanence knelt on one knee: “As you command.”

The Ghost Bride floated down, kneeling like them, but her eyes were still sparkling as she looked at Su Bai.

Sadako slowly knelt, her long hair hanging down.

The Slit-Mouthed Woman knelt on one knee, placing her scissors by her side.

The Mushroom King knelt at the edge of the forest, and behind him, twenty thousand Mushroom People knelt simultaneously.

Su Bai watched this scene, his gaze piercing through the barriers of the Netherworld World to rest on the faint blue portal leading to the War Hall.

Battle Stage?

National geniuses?

Come then.

Let them come.

The moment they step onto the Battle Stage, they will find that what awaits them is no newcomer from a Yin Qi World.

But the Netherworld.

The true Netherworld.